Soulbinder

Hit Points

Hit Dice: 1d6 per Soulbinder level

Hit Points at 1st level: 6 + your Constitution modifier.

Hit Points at Higher Levels: 1d6 (or 4) + your Constitution modifier per Soulbinder level after 1st

Proficiencies

Armor: Light armor

Weapons: Simple weapons

Tools: Choose one type of artisan's tools or musical instrument

Saving Throws: Constitution, Charisma

Skills: Choose two: Acrobatics, Animal Handling, Arcana, History, Nature, Insight, Speech

Equipment

You start with the following equipment, in addition to the equipment granted to you by your background:

Soul Bond

At 1st level, you have chosen to sacrifice a piece of your own soul to gain the aid of a creature stronger than you. You can choose one of several bonds. Your choice of bond grants you additional features when you reach 3rd level and again at 7th, 11th and 15th levels.

Bonded Companion

At 1st level, you have gained a companion that will serve and aid you in every way it possibly can. When you gain your first Soulbinder level you must also create your companion, detailed in the Companion Creation section. You must also pick evolutions for your companion, also detailed in the Companion Creation section.

In combat, your companion shares your initiative count, and you both act on the same turn. It can move and use its reaction on its own, but the only action it takes on its turn is the Dodge action, unless you take an action this turn to command it to take another action. That action can be to attack with its natural weapons or some other action. If you are incapacitated, the companion can take any action of its choice, not just Dodge. While your companion is within 1000 feet of you, you can communicate with it telepathically.

If your companion is reduced to 0 hit points, it falls unconscious and makes death saving throws. If it has died within the last hour, you can use an action to revive it, provided you are within 5 feet of it and you expend a spell slot of 1st level or higher. Your companion returns to life after 1 minute with an amount of hit points equal to ten times the level of the spell slot you used. You can also heal your companion this way while its alive by touching it and spending a spell slot, after a minute your companion regains an amount of hit points equal to ten times the level of the spell slot. At the end of a long rest, you can summon your companion, teleporting it to an empty square within 5 feet of you and reviving it with all its hit points restored if it was dead. If you die, your companion will gain 1 level of exhaustion for each minute you are dead.

Additionally, as an action when you are within 1000 feet of your companion, you can see through your companion's eyes and hear what it hears until the start of your next turn, gaining the benefits of any special senses it has. You can also speak through the companion as if you were there while looking through its senses. During this time, you are deaf and blind with regard to your own senses.

Symbiotic Link

You have sacrificed much of your essence to form the link you have with your companion, but it will in turn protect you with everything it can, at 1st level you gain the following benefits while within 60 feet of your companion:

Hidden Form

You have learned how to reduce your companion's size or hide them on another plane for an easy way to hide or carry it. At 1st level you learn one of the following features:

Shrink. You can use your bonus action to change your companion's size to Tiny or back to its full size if it is within 30 feet of you. If there isn't enough space for it to grow to its original size, it instead takes 1d10 force damage and stays Tiny. While in Tiny form, the companion can't attack in any way.

Pocket Dimension. As an action, you can temporarily dismiss your companion as long as it is within 5 feet of you. It disappears into a pocket dimension where it awaits your summons. As a bonus action, while it is dismissed, you can cause it to reappear in any unoccupied space within 5 feet of you. If you go unconscious while your companion is in its pocket dimension, it reappears within 5 feet on you.

Disguise. As an action you can create an illusion around your companion that makes it looks like another beast or humanoid of similar build and size, such as making a drake look like a dog, or a demon look like a farmer. The disguise end if your companion makes an attack against another creature, casts a spell that affects another creature, or you end it as an action.

At the end of a long rest you can choose to swap out your hidden form feature for a different one.

Spellcasting

By 2nd level, you are now more used to being linked to a magical creature, and have started to be able to use some magic to help your allies or bolster your companion.

Cantrips

At 2nd level, you know two cantrips of your choice from the Soul Binder spell list. You learn an additional Soul Binder cantrip of your choice at 4th level and another at 10th level.

Preparing and Casting Spells

The Soul Binder table shows how many spell slots you have to cast your Soul Binder spells. To cast one of your Soul Binder spells of 1st level or higher, you must expend a slot of the spell's level or higher. You regain all expended spell slots when you finish a long rest. 

You prepare the list of Soul Binder spells that are available for you to cast, choosing from the Soul Binder spell list. When you do so, choose a number of Soul Binder spells equal to your Charisma modifier + half your Soul Binder level (minimum of one spell). The spells must be of a level for which you have spell slots.

For example, if you are a 5th-level Soul Binder, you have four 1st-level and two 2nd-level spell slots. With a Charisma of 14, your list of prepared spells can include four spells of 1st or 2nd level, in any combination. If you prepare the 1st- level spell heroism, you can cast it using a 1st-level or a 2nd-level slot. Casting the spell doesn't remove it from your list of prepared spells. You can change your list of prepared spells when you finish a long rest.

Spellcasting Ability

Charisma is your spellcasting ability for your Soul Binder spells, since the power of your magic relies on you being able to communicate with your companion and the bond that you share. You use your Charisma whenever a spell refers to your spellcasting ability. In addition, you use your Charisma modifier when setting the saving throw DC for a Soul Binder spell you cast and when making an attack roll with one.

Spell Save DC = 8 + your proficiency bonus + your Charisma modifier

Spell Attack Modifier = your proficiency bonus + your Charisma modifier

Spellcasting Focus

You can use an arcane focus as a spellcasting focus for your Soul Binder spells.

Edict

You have gotten better control over your companion and can give it more complicated commands. When you use an action to command your companion you can say an edict as part of that action. You can only activate one edict once per turn. Edicts will refer to your edict die which is a 1d4. At 2nd level, you learn the following edicts:

Strike. You command your companion to attack with extra ferocity. The next time your companion makes an attack this turn, it can add your edict die to its attack roll and its damage roll if the attack hits.

Toughen Up. You command your companion to toughen up and be ready to withstand even more blows. Your companion gains temporary hit points equal to two rolls of your Edict Die, these temporary hit points last for 1 minutes.

Daunt. You command your companion to instill fright and hesitation in your foes. During this turn your companion can use a bonus action to choose a creature within 30 feet of it that can see or hear it. The next time the chosen creature makes an attack roll in the next minute, roll your edict die and subtract the results from the attack roll.

Relocate. Relocate. You tell your companion that it needs to move fast and safely. During this turn your companion can use its bonus action to move up to half its speed without provoking opportunity attacks.

You can use edicts a number of times equal to your charisma modifier + your proficiency bonus (minimum of 1), regaining all uses on a short or long rest. The size of your Edict Die increases as you gain levels in this class, 1d6 at 5th level, 1d8 at 9th level, 1d10 at 13th level and 1d12 at 17th level.

Keen Guidance

Beginning at 3rd level, you can now give your companion commands easier than before. You can command your companion as a bonus action to take an action other than the Dodge action. If you do so, you can also activate an edict as part of this bonus action. Your companion can only take one action each turn.

Ability Score Improvement

When you reach 4th level, and again at 8th, 12th, 16th, and 19th level, you can increase one ability score of your choice by 2, or two ability scores of your choice by 1. Whenever you receive this feature, your companion also receives this feature.

Advanced Offense

You have improved your control over your companion and can offer it better guidance in combat. Starting at 5th level when you use an action to command your companion and they take the attack action this turn, your companion can make two attacks instead of one. Additionally, when you use your action to command your companion, you can make one weapon attack or cast a cantrip (from the Soul Binder spell list) as a bonus action before the end of the turn.

Magic Item Absorption

Beginning at 6th level, the Soul Binder can perform a special ritual to merge a magic item into its companion during a short rest. Merging with an item requires physical contact between the Soul Binder, the item and the companion. 

Certain items have prerequisites. The companion must meet any prerequisite for the item to successfully merge with it. Your companion cannot merge with items requiring a class prerequisite. If the short rest is interrupted, the merging fails. Otherwise, at the end of the short rest, the item merges into the companion.

While merged, the companion gains an intuitive understanding of how to activate any magical properties of the item, including any necessary Command words. Your companion can use the magical properties of the item and apply the effects to its natural weapons and natural armor, but doesn't get the benefit of the armor or weapon itself. It can only have one weapon merged at a time, and one piece of armor (shields count as armor for the purpose of this feature). The companions natural weapons can only benefit from one of the merged items, and you can change this on a short rest, the same goes for its natural armor. If it absorbs a weapon, its attacks becomes magical.

Example: if you bind a +1 Plate armor to your companion it gains +1 to its AC, but not the benefits of wearing Plate armor. Each merged item that requires attunement within the creature counts as an attunement for the Soul Binder. The Soul Binder can voluntarily end the merge by spending another short rest focused on the item, unless the item is cursed. 

If the companion and the Soul Binder both die, all the merged items are expelled from its corpse on the ground around it.

Companion's Protection

When you reach 6th level your companion's defense is better than ever, avoiding everything from traps to spells. It gains proficiency in all saving throws. Additionally, it has advantage on Intelligence and Charisma saving throws when you are within 100 feet of it and it can see you.

Soul Linked Casting

You and your companion are of the same soul, and you can channel magic through your link. At 7th level, when you cast a spell targeting yourself, you can choose to also have the spell affect your companion if the companion is within 60 feet of you. If you lose concentration on the spell, you both lose the effect, and you must make concentration checks also if your companion takes damage, as if you took that amount of damage.

Soul Shield

At 10th level you can use some of your magic to shield your companion from attacks. When your companion takes damage while within 60 feet, you can use your reaction to grant it resistance to that damage. Additionally you can now transfer damage to your companion via the "Symbiotic Link" feature, without needing to use your reaction.

Swift Order

Beginning at 11th level you can now give quick and precise commands to your companion. Your companion can now make two attacks when it takes the attack action if you command it as a bonus action.

Companion Imitation

When you reach 14th level your soul have become so entwined with your companion that you are becoming more like them. Depending on what "Benefit of the Bond" you got from your bond you get one of the following features:

Martial: You can attack twice, instead of once, whenever you take the Attack action on your turn.

Arcane: Once per day as a bonus action, you can choose expended spell slots to recover. The spell slots can have a combined level that is equal to or less than your proficiency modifier.

Resonating Voice

At 18th level you use your magic to command your companion with a voice that resonates with your shared soul link. When you use an edict you can select another edict you know and have that affect your companion as well.

Soul Infused Giant

When you reach 20th level you can infuse your companion with all your energy to make it into a behemoth of raw power. 

As an action while your companion is within 120 feet, you can choose to transform it, while it is transformed it gains the following benefits:

The transformation ends if 1 hour has passed, the companion goes unconscious or if you end it as an action.

Once you have used this feature you must finish a long rest before you can use it again.

Optional Short Rest Spellcasting

You can choose to regain your spell slots on a short rest instead of a long rest, however you must follow the new spell progression table detailed below. You also gain two new features, as shown below, and your spell list is slightly modified.

Spells Known

You are no longer a prepared spellcaster, you are a known spellcaster. At level 1, you know 2 spells. Every time you level up, you may pick an additional spell to add to your list of known spells, to a maximum of 15 known spells. The spell must be of a level for which you have spell slots.

Additionally, whenever you level up in this class, you may swap out one of your known Soul Binder spells and replace it with another Soul Binder spell, which also must be of a level for which you have spell slots.

Soul Binder Arcanum

At 13th level, you choose one 4th level spell from the Modified Soul Binder Spell List. You can cast your arcanum spell once without expending a spell slot. You must finish a long rest before you can do so again. This does not count as one of your known spells, and you cannot cast this spell using spell slots.

At level 17, you gain another arcanum. Choose one 5th level spell from the Modified Soul Binder Spell List. You can cast your arcanum spell once without expending a spell slot. You must finish a long rest before you can do so again. This does not count as one of your known spells, and you cannot cast this spell using spell slots.